Foreign films night not be the most popular genre on college campuses, but they aren’t the least.

University Board will show “Bella,” a tale of love and hope set in New York City, at 8 p.m. today in Buzzard Auditorium and 8 p.m. Saturday in the Charleston/Mattoon Room of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union

University Board’s cultural arts coordinator, Elizabeth Brown hopes students will learn from the film.

“I think it’s important to be exposed to other cultures,” said Brown, a junior psychology major.

With her role at UB, Brown hopes to bring many different kinds of events to Eastern.

“I’m trying to bring events to the campus that people are not used to seeing,” Brown said.

The film is about Jose, a once-great soccer player who sees an abrupt end to his career. He finds himself working as a cook at his brother’s Mexican restaurant. When he reaches out to Nina, a beautiful young waitress, their lives are transformed forever. Seeing movies on a big screen, like the one in Buzzard, has many advantages.

Joseph Heumann, a film studies instructor in the communications department, said lighting, effects and framing are designed specifically for viewing on the big screen. Watching movies on television does not provide the same experience.

With theater prices so high, it is hard for most students to see many movies on a big screen. Because of this, Heumann feels students cannot fully appreciate most movies.

“They don’t see films the way they are meant to be seen, on a big screen,” he said.

Nearly every developed country in the world produces films, most of which never make it to American audiences.

Countries like France and Italy have been making movies for more than 75 years. One particular French film, “Wooden Crosses,” was on Heumann’s list of movies to watch for 20 years. The 1932 World War I combat film was difficult to find, but Heumann says it was worth the wait.

With so many different films being made around the world, it is impossible for them all to be easily accessible.

In almost all other countries, foreign language cinema is dubbed over in the native tongue. America is one of the few countries that use subtitles. This tradition came from returning World War II GIs who picked up a taste for European culture while serving overseas.

Most modern young audiences are losing interest in foreign films.

Melissa Domagala, freshmen undecided major, has only watched foreign films in her high school French class.

“I think they are good as long as I can follow what’s going on,” she said.

Palestine, Iran and South Korea have a strong tradition of the arts. For example, Palestine’s Hany Abu-Assad won the Amnesty International Film Prize in 2005 and was nominated for an Oscar in 2006 for his film, “Paradise Now.” The Czech Republic also harbors famous directors. Czech native, Milos Forman, directed “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” and won two Oscars.

“Salawati” is Charleston native and Eastern alumnus, Marc Grigoroff’s, first film. The film is set in Singapore and mixes the Chinese, Tamil, English and Malay languages.

Though Grigoroff has been living in Japan and Singapore, he brought the film to America for its premiere at the Seattle International Film Festival.

University board presents “Bella”

• What: UB’s movie series presents the Mexican film as part of Latin Heritage Month celebration.

• When: 8 p.m. today and Saturday.

• Where: Today at Buzzard Auditorium, Saturday in Charleston/Mattoon Room of the union.